


I’ll Be There For You

by darknecessities



Category: Panic! at the Disco
Genre: AU, Fluff, Halloween, Kids, M/M, Ryden
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-27
Updated: 2019-10-27
Packaged: 2021-01-04 13:23:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 783
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21198350
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/darknecessities/pseuds/darknecessities
Summary: In second grade, Ryan decides to dress up as a princess for Halloween.





	I’ll Be There For You

**Author's Note:**

> Idk what to say... ‘tis my first time posting on AO3... anyway, I hope you like it and Happy Halloween!!

Halloween has always been Ryan's favorite holiday. On Halloween, he can pretend he's someone else for a day. He can hide behind a costume and act like the person he truly is on the inside. On any other day of the year, Ryan won't say a single word to the bullies. But Halloween changes it all, gives him confidence and makes him feel happy and normal. 

This year for Halloween, Ryan is dressing up as Belle from Beauty and the Beast. He's always had a soft spot for Belle; in his opinion, she's the kindest and most intelligent of all the princesses. If he were a princess (which seems like more trouble than it's worth, to be honest) he'd want to be just like Belle. 

As he sits in the backseat of his mom's truck, Ryan bounces his knee and picks at his fingernails. Even though he would never admit it to his parents, he's nervous. He knows the bullies will make fun of him for his costume. But... he's also excited. Today is Halloween. Even if he gets made fun of, it's still the best holiday ever. 

The truck pulls into the school parking lot a little too early for Ryan's liking, but he feigns confidence and excitement as he kisses his mom goodbye and hops out of the car. He keeps his head down as he walks through the gates, avoiding eye contact with his fellow students at all costs. But all too soon he arrives at his second grade classroom. Staring down at the floor, he steps through the door in his beautiful yellow dress. 

No one notices him, not really. But then he makes the mistake of making eye contact with his teacher. She smiles sweetly and loudly exclaims, "Oh, Ryan, I love your costume!" And just like that, it's all over. 

Twenty some pairs of eyes turn to look at Ryan just as he drops his backpack and races out the door as fast as his princess sandals will carry him. He does his best to hide in the hallway, but the other students catch up to him quickly. 

Brent, Kenny, and Shane form a half circle around him in a matter of moments, hurling second grade insults about his pwetty pwetty pwincess costume. Ryan says nothing, just stares blankly at the boys in front of him and tries not to cry. They're getting louder and stepping in closer, and he feels stuck. Just as he's about to break into tears, he hears someone scold the bullies. 

Brent and Shane step reluctantly away from Ryan, and another boy steps forward, smiling kindly at him. It's that Brendon kid, the one with the soft hair and pretty eyes, and he's come to rescue Ryan. 

"Guys, can you stop being mean to him, please?" says Brendon with a diplomatic but forceful tone. 

Brent backs further away, slight guilt clouding his features, but doesn't leave completely. Shane stands his ground, and Kenny steps toward Brendon. He squares his shoulders and attempts to look intimidating, but Brendon just smirks at him and repeats his request much more forcefully. 

"Why do you care so much, Urie?" remarks Kenny. "You wanna be a pwetty pwetty pwincess too?" 

Brendon scoffs and shoves at Kenny's chest, who narrows his eyes but takes a step back. 

"Just go, alright? Leave him alone! He did nothing to you, and he's a much nicer person than you'll ever be. So just shut up and leave, okay?!" Brendon reaches for Ryan's hand and squeezes it firmly, whispering, "Stand your ground, alright?"

Ryan is surprised at the contact, but he nods his head vigorously and says to Kenny in a trembling voice, "Yeah, just... just go away, okay?"  
Kenny scoffs and rolls his eyes and Shane mutters a "whatever, man," but they both turn and walk back to class.

Ryan can't breathe for a moment, he can't breathe, what just happened, he can't-  
"Hey, you okay now?" Brendon asks gently, squeezing Ryan's hand before letting go. 

Ryan nods and sinks to the ground, taking several shallow breaths before saying, "Th-thanks, Brendon." He smiles up at Brendon weakly, and Brendon grins brightly back. 

"No problemo, man." Brendon sits down beside Ryan and says, "So, you're Belle, right?"

Ryan nods, smiling wider and running his hands through his hair. 

"Well, that's, like, awesome, because I'm actually the Beast, I just left my mask inside, and, yeah..." Brendon trails off as he stands up and pats Ryan's shoulder. "See you around, man. You... you make a beautiful princess."

Ryan grins wider than ever before as Brendon walks away. Maybe with Brendon around to help him out, every day can be as awesome as Halloween.


End file.
